Bumps and Bruises
by Firecracker9
Summary: Basically a Wanda Maximoff/Darcy Lewis soulmate au.
1. Chapter 1

Her whole life, Wanda Maximoff had heard tales of soulmates receiving each other's injuries, but she hadn't really believed it until she was twelve years old. She was walking with Pietro to school from the orphanage, trying to walk fast to stay warm, when she felt a sudden burst of pain in both of her knees. She fell to the sidewalk, clutching her knees as Pietro noticed her pain. "Are you all right? Wanda, are you all right?" "Ye-Yes." She gasped. "I'm okay." And they continued on their way. Later that day, Wanda noticed a blooming bruise on the center of each of her knees, and she knew, then, that her soulmate had caused them. After that first time, it happened more and more frequently. Every time, Wanda had battered knees and bruised shins, but the rest of her body was remarkably untouched. Whoever her soulmate was, he or she must be a soccer player, she'd figured. She and Pietro used to stare at her bruised knees and wonder what her soulmate was like. "Not careful with their knees, that's for sure." Seventeen year-old Wanda groused as she nursed the latest bruise, lying on her tattered orphanage blanket. But then, when Wanda was twenty, the constant bruises stopped. Whoever he or she was, Wanda's soulmate had quit playing soccer.

Darcy loved soccer, starting when she was twelve. Loved it. She spent every spare moment practicing with her four brothers, which meant getting pushed around a lot. She'd fallen on her knees more often than she could count, and had numerous bruises blooming on her shins and knees. She felt a bit guilty, knowing that she had a soulmate out there somewhere, who was now suffering those same injuries, but nothing could stop Darcy from playing soccer. She played in high school, and even got a scholarship to play for a college. When she was twenty, she got an internship for Jane Foster, a scientist, and suddenly Darcy knew that soccer wasn't where her talents were. Science was so much more interesting, and soccer had just fallen to the back burner. Darcy still occasionally played, but never like she used to, and also without the bruises.

Wanda thought her days of enduring needless pain were over. Then she and Pietro signed up for Strucker's experiments, and their powers developed. She received splitting headaches in those first days, when no amount of aspirin would make the pain disappear. She eventually learned to control her powers, and the headaches went away. She couldn't help but wonder what her soulmate must've thought about the chronic headaches and their sudden disappearance. But then the Avengers came, and Pietro and Wanda were so wrapped up in helping Ultron, and then fighting against him, that Wanda's mysterious soulmate was forgotten.

A few years later, Darcy was eating breakfast with Jane when her head suddenly seemed to split in two. A terrible headache like she'd never know split her skull, and Darcy knew it was because of her soulmate. The headaches were chronic, and continued off and on for a year. Darcy was relieved when they finally stopped, thinking maybe her soulmate had gotten the hint and was taking aspirin. Then Thor came, and life was too exciting to think about a soulmate out there with chronic head pain.

After Pietro's death, Wanda spent her nights wandering the halls of the Avengers headquarters, trying to keep the nightmares and the guilt at bay. "Hey, you're Wanda, right?" Wanda turned toward the source of the voice and saw a pretty girl smiling at her. Not just any pretty girl, but Darcy Lewis, who was Jane Foster's intern, and in turn knew Thor. She was here with Jane, visiting. Wanda smiled shyly back. Darcy then tried to pour herself some coffee, but accidentally spilled it all over herself. With a hiss of pain, she shoved her hand under the sink, before noticing that Wanda was cradling her hand as if it was burnt. The two women looked each other in the eyes, and Wanda just knew. "You're my-" She said, shocked. "Yeah. I guess so." Darcy said, grinning as she nursed her burnt hand under the cold water. "My name's Darcy." "Wanda. Want to go get some real coffee with me?" "You bet."

A few years passed, and Darcy had decided to visit Avenger headquarters with Jane. Get away from all of the drama and just relax, well, as much as one could with the Avengers. She was making coffee in the kitchen, Stark's crappy coffee, when she heard soft footsteps behind her. She turned, and smiled at the beautiful girl in front of her. Wanda Maximoff, whose twin had recently died. Darcy then tried to pour herself some coffee, but accidentally spilled it all over herself. With a hiss of pain, she shoved her hand under the sink, before noticing that Wanda was cradling her hand as if it was burnt. The two women looked each other in the eyes, and Darcy felt like she'd been hit by lightning. A huge grin split her face, stretching from ear to ear. "You're my-" She said, shocked. "Yeah. I guess so." Darcy said, still watching Wanda with a smile. "My name's Darcy." "Wanda. Want to go get some real coffee with me?" "You bet."


	2. Chapter 2

The sun filtered through the blinds, and the smell of green tea reached Wanda Maximoff's nose. She groaned and turned around in the bed. "Hey babe!" Darcy sounded positively cheerful for this early in the morning, her hands clasping a cup. "What time is it?" Wanda asked groggily. "It's eight o'clock! Time for Avengers business!" "If I had known that you were such a cursed morning person, I would have rethought that coffee invite." Wanda growled into her pillow. "As if you could resist your beautiful soulmate's charm." Darcy said coyly. "I suppose you could be right." Wanda said shyly, pulling Darcy down for a quick kiss. "You are very cute, after all. "Only cute?" Darcy asked, pouting. "Not drop dead gorgeous?" "Well, that too, I suppose." Wanda giggled as Darcy playfully wiped away a fake tear before tossing a sweatshirt onto the bed. "Here, put that on, we have somewhere to go." "Oh yeah?" Wanda asked, smiling. "Yeah." Darcy smiled back before swiftly kissing Wanda and exiting the room. Wanda groaned as she rose and put the sweatshirt on over the red dress she had been wearing the day before. She smiled as she remembered what had happened the night before, after she and Darcy had come back from getting coffee. Darcy had offered her the extra bedroom in her apartment in the Avengers tower, and she had stayed the night. Waking up to Darcy's green tea, however annoying, was the most perfect thing Wanda could have imagined.

Wanda wandered into the kitchen, and seeing Darcy engrossed in buttering two slices of toast, snuck up on her and pecked her on the cheek affectionately. "Hey!" Darcy said, turning to look at Wanda. She gestured to the tangled long locks of Wanda's hair. "Aren't you going to anything about that?" Wanda shrugged. "You haven't told me where we're going yet. "Can't take you anywhere." Darcy teased. "So where are we going?" Wanda asked as she leaned against the countertop and twisted a lock of her hair around her finger. "Someplace special." Darcy said as she handed Wanda a piece of toast. Wanda grinned as she followed Darcy to a car parked outside. Darcy drove them to an abandoned parking lot and stopped the car in the middle. "What are we doing here?" "Testing your powers." Darcy said and gestured with her hands. "I wanna see if you can drive the car with your powers. "You think I can do that?" Darcy shrugged. "Thought it would be fun to try." "Yes. Yes, I will try." Wanda said with determination. She stretched her fingers out and reached in the direction of the steering wheel…

"Whoo! Yeah!" Darcy was yelling at the top of her lungs as Wanda pulled them across the parking lot with her powers. "This is the best thing ever!" Wanda grinned, her cheeks flushed, and pushed her hand out suddenly to stop the car in its rapid 360 turn. "You were right! I can do it!" Wanda said excitedly. "Of course you can do it, I knew you could." Darcy sobered and looked into the Wanda's bright green eyes. "You don't have to be afraid of your powers anymore. You can do anything!" Wanda nodded, blinking suddenly, overcome with love for her soulmate. "Thank you." She whispered. Darcy kissed her cheek gently and nodded back. "Anytime. I'm here for you, Wanda."

"Is it just me, or are those two acting different?" Tony Stark mused as he watched Wanda Maximoff and Darcy Lewis return from wherever they had headed out to. He turned to Thor. "I'll bet you the new lightsaber prototype I'm building that they're together." "The lady Lewis? I always thought she and the intern Ian had some sort of courtship…" Thor mused. "You're on, Tony. There's no way those two are together. They're totally diferent people!" Clint chimed in. "We will see." Tony replied. "I bet that those two will hook up before tomorrow afternoon, if they haven't already." "I will bet my good set of arrows that Darcy has a thing with the intern, like Thor said." Clint said. "Well my friend, prepare to lose those arrows." Tony said smugly. Thor grinned and said, "I will watch in great amusement from the sidelines, and I am most eager to see who will vanquish whom."


	3. Chapter 3

_You gotta go and get angry at all of my honesty, you know I try but I don't do too well with apologies…_

"I said I was sorry! What more do you want?" Darcy snapped, frustrated. "I want you to tell me why!" Wanda shouted, tears blurring the deep green of her eyes. "Why am I never enough for you? Why do you always need someone else, is it because of me? Am I just not enough for you? You just think you can just sleep with whoever you want and I won't care, right?" Darcy groaned. "That's not...you've got it all wrong! I made a mistake, and I'm sorry!" "Well sorry doesn't mean _a thing_ if you're just going to go and do it again!" Wanda yelled, her voice breaking. She looked down at her chipped black nail polish and said quietly, "Do you love her?" Darcy shook her head vehemently. "No. She was just a distraction. I promise, Wanda, _I love you_!" Darcy said. "I was messed up, it was a bad day, and I didn't want to hurt you!" Wanda scoffed. "You really think I'm that weak that I need to be protected by you? You think that every time you have a bad day you can just cheat on me and it won't matter? I tried to help you, Darcy, but you don't want to be helped! Do you really think that sleeping with Ian Boothby is the answer?" "I was mad, Wanda, I was mad at everything and I didn't want to take advantage of you and hurt the one person I love the most." Wanda shook her head. "I think you should go." "Wanda…" Wanda's anger deflated a bit at the look on Darcy's face. "I just need some space, Darcy. Please just leave me alone."

 _I know you know that I made those mistakes maybe once or twice  
By once or twice I mean maybe a couple a hundred times  
So let me, oh let me redeem, oh redeem, oh myself tonight  
Cause I just need one more shot at second chances…_

"Please let me in, Wanda." Darcy rested her head against the cool wood of the bathroom door. "I'm sorry, Wanda, and I promise I'm gonna try to do better. Please open up the door?" On the other side of the door, Wanda stared at her reflection in the sink as the faucet continued to run. She stared at the bruise-like shadows underneath her eyes and her shaking hands and wondered when she had become this shell of the woman she had once been. She turned away from the mirror and opened the door abruptly. Darcy, who had been leaning on the door, fell forward as the door suddenly opened. She suspected Wanda had done so on purpose. "Well?" Wanda asked coldly. "What do you want?" Darcy looked at Wanda and tried not to let her shock show at her girlfriend's appearance. Wanda had always been strong, her eyes filled with life and a fire that was now horribly missing. _How did I not realize that all of this broke her? That_ I _broke her._ Guilt struck Darcy with the force of a freight train. "You look like crap." Wanda scoffed and leaned defensively against the door with her arms folded across her chest. "You are one to talk." Darcy sighed. "I'm sorry, Wanda. You're right, about all of it, just give a second chance, please? I know I don't deserve one, that I've had plenty of second chances, but please forgive me. I promise I'll never cheat again. I love you, Wanda." Wanda's expression didn't change. "It's too late for that, Darcy. I think…I think we should take a break for a while. You're so determined to see other people, go see other people. Only come back when you're _sure_ you want to be with me. You need to make a choice, Darcy, because I'm not going to stick around for forever." Darcy stood in shock as Wanda slammed the door in her face.

 _Yeah, is it too late now to say sorry?  
Cause I'm missing more than just your body_

 _Is it too late now to say sorry?  
Yeah I know that I let you down  
Is it too late to say I'm sorry now…_

Wanda sat on the bathroom floor, brushing the tangles out of her long hair. It had been two months since she had effectively broken up with Darcy, and ever since there had been a painful void in her life. She was angry, she was hurt by what Darcy did, but she couldn't hate her, she just _couldn't_. Darcy was her soulmate, and being away from her was causing the dull throbbing in her chest, the constant tears that wouldn't stop, and the depression. It was like a floodgate had been opened, and Wanda couldn't stop the tide of emotion. Missing Darcy was an ever-present ache in her chest, a pain that she could never forget. _Screw her._ Wanda thought bitterly. _I'm moving on, I'm not doing this anymore._ Anyway, she had a date tonight with Daisy Johnson, the leader of Coulson's team of inhumans. Daisy had been the one to go up to her and ask her out, and Wanda didn't have the energy to say no. She and Darcy weren't together anymore, after all. Wanda got up from the floor and pulled her hair back into a ponytail, and checked her outfit. Satisfied with her choice of black jeans and a red sleeveless top with a black leather jacket, she applied some more red lipstick and left for the diner where she had arranged to meet Daisy. She spotted the diner and entered nervously. Daisy was waiting in a booth alone, typing furiously on her laptop. She looked up when Wanda approached, sliding into the opposite booth, and flashed a dazzling smile. "Hey! You made it!" Wanda smiled back shyly. "Yes, I am here now." Her accent seemed to thicken in her nervous state, and Wanda blushed, mortified. Daisy only grinned and closed her laptop, putting it on the seat next to her. "So, Wanda," Daisy began, pushing a strand of short hair behind her ear. "You want some of my fries?" "Sure." Wanda took one, trying to still the nervous shake of her hands. "You work for Coulson, yes? What is that like? And don't worry," Wanda said hastily as Daisy frowned, "The rest of the Avengers all found out when Maria told them a few months ago." "Oh." The relief in Daisy's sigh was clear. "It's good, interesting, you know? I mean, I've always wanted to help people, and now I can. What about you? What's it like to be an Avenger?" "It is nice. I like doing good with the Avengers. I miss my brother, but I know this is what he would have wanted me to do." Daisy nodded understandingly, reaching out and taking Wanda's hand. "Yeah, I get what that's like." Wanda smiled shyly, biting her lip. She had just opened her mouth to speak when the door to the diner was flung open and Darcy walked in, her scowl deepening when she spotted Wanda and Daisy in a booth together. "Darcy!" Wanda said, struggling to stay civilized. "What are you doing here?" Darcy grunted and flopped down in a booth behind them. "Don't mind _me_ , just get on with your little _date_ , and I'll just be here." " _Darcy!_ " Wanda hissed, but Daisy shook her head good-naturedly. "Don't worry about it, Wanda, I kind of should get going anyway. See you around?" Wanda nodded and Daisy leaned in and kissed Wanda gently on the cheek. Darcy's grip on her phone tightened and she glared daggers at Daisy as she left the diner. "Is _that_ who you're dating now?" Darcy said icily. Wanda stood abruptly and got out of her booth, fuming. "How _dare_ you just waltz in like that! We're not together anymore, Darcy, and you should just get used to that!" "I said I'm sorry, what more do you want?" Darcy said angrily. Wanda just shook her head and said coldly, "I can't do this any more, Darcy. We're done. Just leave me alone." With that Wanda left the diner, leaving a despondent Darcy behind alone.


End file.
